Punjab pastor who amassed following of millions – both offline and online – faces sexual harassment case

Punjab pastor who amassed following of millions – both offline and online – faces sexual harassment case

A self-professed miracle healer, a subject of many memes, and a preacher who claims to preside over 260 churches worldwide — Pastor Bajinder Singh is many things to many people. For the Punjab police, however, he is currently an accused in a sexual harassment case who is yet to turn himself in.

On February 28, Singh (42) was booked based on a complaint filed by a 22-year-old woman at the Kapurthala City police station. The head of the Church of Glory and Wisdom, headquartered in Jalandhar’s Tajpur village, Singh has been booked under sections of sexual harassment, stalking and criminal intimidation. The woman claims she first started visiting his church when she was 16-17 and was sexually harassed for years.

Since her complaint, police have formed a Special Investigation Team, the state Women’s Commission has sought a response from Singh, and a Mohali court has issued non-bailable warrants in a separate rape case.

A senior police officer said that while the charges are bailable, bail can only be granted once he surrenders or is arrested. According to police sources, the pastor is believed to be in Nepal.

Investigating Officer Rajvinder Kaur confirmed that Singh has neither surrendered nor been arrested.

Sanjiv Kumar Kaura, the chairman of the Tajpur church, said Singh lives in Chandigarh with his family and only comes to Jalandhar for congregations. He said the church has 260 branches worldwide. ‘Leveling allegations and proving them are two different things. If a case has been registered, let the investigation be completed, and everything will be crystal clear. When you rise, you have several enemies,’ he told The Indian Express.

Asked about non-bailable warrants issued by the Mohali court in a separate case from 2018, he said the pastor was to appear in court but could not do so because he was unwell.

Speaking to The Indian Express, the woman said she approached the Kapurthala Senior Superintendent of Police with her complaint on February 20. When the police allegedly did not act, she approached the DGP in Chandigarh on February 28, and an FIR was registered, she said. She alleged that police did not charge the pastor under the POCSO Act although she was a minor when the alleged sexual harassment took place.

The rise from anonymity

To the general public, Singh is perhaps best known for his ubiquitous presence on social media, where his so-called miracles have garnered him a following — both among believers and those who mock him with memes. Clips of him singing ‘Mera Yeshu Yeshu’ at gatherings or dramatically ‘curing’ diseases like cancer and AIDS are the subject of many reels on Instagram. On YouTube, his channel has 3.74 million subscribers.

According to close associates, Singh comes from a Jat family in Haryana’s Yamunanagar and converted to Christianity more than a decade ago, when he was in jail in an alleged murder case.

Upon his release, he became a preacher in 2012, initially delivering sermons in Mohali before establishing the Tajpur church. According to those associated with his office, he has 23 churches in Punjab and several outside, including in Canada, the US, the UK and Dubai.

In 2018, he was booked in an alleged rape case and arrested from Indira Gandhi International Airport while flying to London. He was later released on bail, and the case is being heard in a Mohali court, which issued warrants against him recently.

In 2021, he courted trouble with the National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights, which sought action against him over a video involving a boy in superstitious activities.

In 2022, he was accused by a Delhi family of taking money to treat their daughter, who eventually died of cancer.

In 2023, the Income Tax Department raided his church and took away several documents.

The church is known for its day-long congregations on Sundays and sometimes Thursdays, where thousands turn up in the hopes of finding a cure for whatever ails them. The congregations are broadcast live or recorded on the church’s channel, and testimonies from people are a key segment.

The income, volunteers say, comes from donations and by selling products such as oils and soaps.

The pastor is also known for his links in the entertainment industry, often sharing photos and video clips in which prominent actors are heard saying that attending his congregations brought them good luck.

‘The purpose of these testimonies is to convince the people of his miracles,’ said a volunteer associated with the church.